Soy Crafters Section

Many of our customers are
missing our Powdered Tempeh Starter (PTS). Unfortunately, we no longer
have it available.

POWDERED NATTO STARTER

Called Natto
in Japan and Thua-nao in Thailand this cultured whole bean soy food has a
strong, somewhat persistent, unique flavor. The bacteria, Bacillus subtilis
var natto, makes cooked soybeans into a sticky, viscous polymer during
the 6-12 hours of incubation. This creates wispy threads evident when the
cultured soybeans are pulled apart. Kept
cool and dry, Natto Starter has at least a 6 month shelf life at full potency.

A good source of
protein, this robust soy food adds zest to any grain or noodle dish, soup or
sandwich. A little goes a long way, so what is not intended for use in a day or
two may be easily frozen.

Natto Starter Kit:
This kit contains the culture, directions and recipes. Each Kit contains enough
starter to make a total of 4.5 pounds of Natto or 3 batches of 1.5 pounds each.
One teaspoon of Natto starter, plus one pound of soybeans will make 1.5 pounds
of fresh Natto.

Commercial
Natto Starter: A concentrated spore imported from Japan, this vial has sufficient
spore to start 48 pounds of dry soybeans making about 86 pounds of natto.

MISO, SHOYU, TAMARI, and AMAZAKE STARTERS

Amazake
is a naturally sweet cultured rice drink. During the culture process, enzymes
break down complex rice starches to sugars making amazake sweet to the taste for
drinking or use as a natural sweetener in other foods.

Miso is a savory seasoning which aids digestion and is used much like bouillon
in soups, but also in an endless number of grain and vegetable dishes, marinades,
and pickles. Basic miso varieties are named rice, barley or soybean, according
to that main ingredient, and have varying amounts of salt, other ingredients and
aging times.

Shoyu
(naturally fermented soy sauce) and Tamari are cultured liquid soy seasonings, similar to miso but made with more liquid.

Allthe above are two-step
fermentations. Making koji, the first step, mixes cooked grains and/or soybeans
with different strains of Aspergillus oryzae, a mold, called "tane koji"
or koji starter. This first step involves cooking the grain, adding the starter,
and incubating the koji culture about 48 hours. The second fermentation, making
amazake, misos, shoyu, or tamari involves simply stirring the koji together with
other ingredients according to the directions provided.

The
five varieties of "tane koji" we import from Japan are listed below, each with
the names of the products to be made with it and the aging times in parentheses. Kept cool and dry, all koji starters have at
least a 6 month shelf life at full potency.

Each of the four Miso varieties above are available in 40
gm packets, each with spore sufficient to inoculate 440 pounds of koji substrate
(rice, barley, or soybeans). Shoyu Koji Starter is a 60 gm packet with enough spores
for 295 pounds each of soybeans and wheat to make 100 gallons of Shoyu.

Light Koji- The
first fermentation is done for you! Organic lightly polished rice, is
cultured with Light Rice Koji Starter. This 500 gram package of gently dried koji will allow you to make up to
8 quarts of Amazake, 4 pounds of miso, lots of pickles or some of each. Recipes
for Shiro and Shinshu Miso, Amazake, and Koji Pickles are included. Please refrigerate
or freeze the unused portion.

Barley Koji- The
first fermentation is done for you! For use in making Mugi Miso, Finger
Lickin' Miso, Nattoh Miso, pickles and other fermented foods. Recipes
included. Freeze the unused portion.

Unpasteurized Miso,
Seed Miso, is an ingredient in Miso making that contributes active beneficial organisms
to get new Misos fermenting vigorously. A recommended addition to your first homemade
Miso, Seed Miso can be saved from your first batch for all future Misos.